Book 2: 9 lectures and 25 classes by Swamiji.
Mastery of the mind (East) vs Knowledge accumulation (West)
The California Lectures, Dec-1899, May-1900. Swamiji, gave some 80 lectures on his second visit to the West, in Los Angeles and San Francisco. He took the highest teachings of ancient India (The Forest Books, Upanishads – much read by Schopenhauer!) and made them simple – ‘so a child can understand them’, he said. With his refined thinking and using Western logic (with a BA degree) he had a message for those with open minds. He sees clean through the hypocrasy of the West’s material values. Swami Vivekananda is called Swamiji.
‘One feels the power is still there, 50 years later’, recorder of some Swamiji lectures – Ida Ansell, San Francisco, 1953.
From his Scottish missionary teacher, Swamiji has learnt, ‘Das Ding an sich’ (Kant) – he often uses the rational approach.
To have mastery over the mind means to control everything.
Limiting possessions strengthens the willpower. It frees up time to think. A strong will leads to mastery.
Swamiji – ‘I have a message for the West, just as Buddha had a message for the East.’
‘One of the greatest mistakes of your Western civilisat-ion is you teach using only the intellect, you take no care of the heart. You have not educated the heart!’
Compiled by John Slight.
© Dorkaz Press, Lübeck, Germany. 2022.
